Sterile spray or squirt bottles are commonly used to dispense decontaminating and disinfecting liquids, such as a sterile 70% isopropyl alcohol solution, for example, for maintaining controlled environments, such as in pharmacology and manufacturing. Referring to FIG. 1, a prior art hand operated trigger spray bottle 10 containing such liquids is typically supplied packaged in double or triple sealed bags 12, and may also be irradiated such as with gamma radiation to at least initially ensure that the bottle and contents are sterile and pyrogen free according to industry standards. Referring to FIG. 2, the dispensing head 14 of a conventional hand operated trigger sprayer typically includes a vent passage 16 in the housing 18 of the pump of the sprayer which communicates through the connection of the dispensing head with the reservoir portion 20 of the bottle with the interior of the reservoir portion to allow venting of the interior of the reservoir portion of the sprayer. A piston 22 which is reciprocated in a chamber 24 in the housing typically has a seal associated with the vent passage so that vacuum development in the container is avoided when the sprayer is used. However, when a liquid is dispensed from the sprayer, the spray container typically refills through the vent with ambient air that can contain contaminants, so that after the bottle is used, the bottle and its contents can no longer be guaranteed to be sterile and free from pyrogens to meet industry standards.
Another similar type of conventional hand operated trigger sprayer includes an air inlet unit that prevents the spray bottle from leaking contents of the bottle through the air inlet vent port during operation. However, ambient air entering the spray bottle is not filtered, and can permit contaminants to enter the spray bottle along with ambient air during use. A liquid sprayer is also known that includes a bottle having an opening and a sprayer housing attached to the bottle with a venting mechanism. Although a dip tube filter can be added at the lower end of a dip tube to prevent particles from obstructing the nozzle, ambient air entering the sprayer is not filtered, allowing contaminants to enter the sprayer during use.
A squeeze bottle for use as an eyedropper is also known that includes a discharge port with a filter to prevent ambient air and bacteria from entering a liquid content of the container so as to keep it sterilized even after unsealed for use. A discharging passage is formed in the stopper of the bottle, and the stopper further has a check valve and a filter disposed on the discharge port on the downstream side of the valve. The bottle is formed with an outer layer and an inner layer delaminating from the outer layer, and a vent hole is formed in the outer layer so as to introduce ambient air in between outer and inner layers of the container, but ambient air entering the bottle through the vent is not filtered, allowing contaminants to enter through the vent.
It would thus be desirable to provide a bottle for dispensing a sterile liquid with a filter member that seals the opening of the reservoir portion of the bottle for filtering ambient air entering through a vent of the bottle to prevent contaminants from entering along with ambient air through the vent of the bottle. The present invention meets these and other needs.